The long rescue operation to rescue 41 construction workers from a collapsed road tunnel in India is apparently on the verge of a breakthrough.
Rescuers, who are now digging manually, are now just five meters away from the buried victims, Uttarakhand state government chief Pushkar Singh Dhami told reporters near the construction site today. A breakthrough is expected “soon”.
“The escape route has been prepared up to 52 meters in the tunnel and the advance will take place at 57 meters,” Puskar Singh Dhami further said. The rescue operation “is expected to be completed soon”. He did not give a specific deadline. Just yesterday they were nine meters away from the trapped construction workers.
Special drill broke
With the help of a special drill, they quickly made their way through tons of earth and rubble and installed a steel tube through which the trapped people could crawl to freedom.
But then the drill hit thick metal beams, buried construction vehicles and broke. Time is of the essence: the northern Himalayan state of Uttarakhand is now facing bitter cold.